Counting device



May 25, 1954 E. D. DEAN 2,679,312

COUNTING DEVICE Filed Oct. 13, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

Fig. 2 BY 7) z P P 4 ATTORJVE'YS May 25, 1954 E. D. DEAN 2,679,312

commune DEVICE Filed Oct. 15, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented May 25, 1 954 COUNTING DEVICE Elliott D. Dean, Putnam, Conn., assignor, by mesne assignments, to The Putnam Needle Company, a corporation of Connecticut Application October 13, 1947, Serial No. 779,572

5 Claims.

This invention relates to a packaging machine for substantially cylindrical articles having a pointed end, such as phonograph needles, and particularly for automatic machinery for filling a package with a definite number of such articles.

In the art of packaging it is customary to provide a hopper for the material to be packaged and to provide a trough leading from the hopper and delivering into a bucket carried by weighing mechanism. When the bucket has been filled to the desired weight, it is usually discharged in to an empty package and returns to its former position for a similar cycle of operation.

The usual material to be packaged as above is of a granular or powdered nature and the troughs used have generally been on a horizontal plane. The troughs are often carried on parallel arms so pivoted that an electromagnetic vibrator can cause the trough to reciprocate axially while maintaining its horizontal position.

It is well known that a horizontal trough vibrated axially which receives a mass of granulated or acicular material from a hopper tends to move it along the trough as a mass although it may form in front of the mass a gradually levelled out layer of gradually decreasing height. At the delivery end of the trough if the material is granular, the forward rows of material fall off in a thin, wide stream into the weighing bucket.

However, with material of an acicular nature,

each article has substantial length and weight and when a thin wide stream of the same is dropped off the end of a trough, it prevents delicate and accurate weighing.

By the term acicular, I mean needle shaped articles of substantially uniform cross section which taper to one pointed end. I include within this term cylindrical phonograph needles and such needles having a flattened portion for example those of the Petmecky type, well known in the trade.

I have discovered that an inclined trough is preferable for acicular articles and can be used in a device for weighing a definite number of cylindrical needles if a substantial portion of the trough at and near the delivery end is inclined only a, slight degree from the horizontal. I prefer to use two troughs of approximately equal length, the trough adjacent to the hopper being at a sharper angle than the second trough adjacent to the bucket. I may however use one trough having two angles of inclination the essential feature being the decreased inclination ad- ,iacent to the delivery end.

An inclined trough such as described in the preceding paragraph, if arranged to reciprocate axially and if reciprocated in an axial direction by a vibrator, as in prior devices, may cause the whole mass of needle shaped articles to slide downward and into the weighing bucket. This is undesirable because toward the end of the operation of filling the bucket it is necessary to have the flow limited to one or two articles at a time.

I therefore fix my inclined trough at each end to permit imperceptible transverse vibration but not to permit any perceptible reciprocation, either transversely or axially at the delivery end thereof. Instead of tapping the trough in an axial direction, I alTlx my electro-magnetic vibrator so that the trough is tapped repeatedly in a transverse direction. Furthermore, I have discovered that when the vibrator is applied at or near the delivery end of the trough, the mass of needle shaped articles remains substantially stationary while the forward upper articles, peel off one by one and progress down the trough in a single layer each article gradually assuming a position parallel to the direction of travel.

With my improved vibrating trough, the cylindrical needle shaped articles tend to align themselves first in a herringbone fashion and, as they approach the delivery end, tend to assume a position parallel to the axis of the trough. The sides of my inclined trough are preferably tapered down to a small mouth, slightly wider than the length of one such article. This also tends to force the needle shaped articles into alignment parallel with the axis of the trough.

At the mouth of the trough, the articles, instead of arriving in wide rows or in jumbled juxtaposition, are delivered in overlapping relation to each other, one slightly behind the other. Therefore, only one article at a time commences the fall into my weighing bucket, as its centre of gravity passes the tip of the trough, and a delicate flow control is thus possible.

My weighing mechanism is so arranged that, after the bucket is tilted, emptied into a pack age, and returned to its normal position, an electric circuit to the vibrator is closed and rapid transverse vibration of the trough commences. I provide a contact arm comprising a strip of resilient metal associated with the scale beam carrying the bucket for making and breaking the electric circuit of my device.

In operation, the vibration of the trough rapidly fills the bucket until the counterweight on the scale beam is overbalanced at which point my resilient contact arm separates from its contact point and breaks the circuit.

However the slight momentum of the needle shaped articles in falling from the tip of the trough so rapidly, together with the weight of the articles themselves, causes the bucket to over balance the counterweight only temporarily. When the efieot of the onientum of the articles is absorbed, the scale beam therefore swings back to its ori inal position, closing the contact arm momentarily, and permitting the electro-magnetic vibrator to again ap the trough.

Several more nee les may fall from the trough into the bucket at this time which again causes the contact arm to open the circuit. This same cycle may be repeated several times until the final taps by the vi- 'ttor are of such short dura tion that only one article at a time may fall into the bucket. The exact count is reach d when the bucket actua y overbalances the counterweight by the weight or" articles alone, and the bucket is then tilted into an empty package, manually, by an operator.

1 use different countenveiglrs for different sizes and of such cylindrical pointed articles and .v c cu t neludes a rheostat for cont s e oper of the circuit. I may also include a manually operated gate in the trough to control the flow of articles from the hopper into the trough.

In the drawings,

Fig. l is a front perspective view of my device.

Fig. 2 is a side perspective view.

Fig. 3 is a view.

Fig. i is an enlarge-:1 detailed plan view or" the delivery f o its contents.

Fig. 5 a modified Iorrn of trough.

Fig. 6 is an enlo.

'agm ntary front view of the scale b .e 1111 of my device, and

or my device. l form over whi ch As shown, a hopper E is right members i justment of the set screw oy uprigl 5 around the per is permittea holding band i.

by three upu vertical aci- "ting the bead whereby the 11 1 as phonosuch l hopper H, flow graph need by gravity of any sui 25 integral wl tically sliziable known s which may be .iclined trough iii. 1 provide a veradjustable by any rell screw :2, to control the into the or n, shown in Figrough into which eds into a weighing bucket trough 3%} projects over the edge of platform A and rests on the platform betveen two upright posts 3% and 32.

Trough has a bottom 25 and pariliel side walls 22, 22 while trougl" has a bottom and sidewalls \vhi tively narro' tapered portions guide any needle shapeo. articles, such as N, which may be progressing down trough 3G with their substantially perpendicular to the trough into a position in whi h they are each parallel to the trough.

Trough 30 is hinge pivoted. at 38 to a member 38 fixed to trough 2 3 by any suitable means so that positioning of hopper H by set screw 3, moves conduit is and trough and permits trough so to assume alter or less angle of inclination, in a vert' -al plane, as desired.

An eleetro-magnetic v rator or other automatic vibrating mechan .1 is fixed to a side wall 35 of trough 3 by fastening means such as bolts 5!. Vibrator E5 is of a type well known in the er and preferably consists of a plunger and magnetic coi which, upon the application electric current, causes the plunger 62 to repeatedly tap wall I prefer to apply the vibrating plunger 62 to the side wall 35 in the location shown in the draw :s because I have found that the best e so 0. tained.

results a -.en hopper t on of trough .iuit i6 and through er No appreciable movement of hoppers or troughs s oonstrui ough the arti- .te the greatconsiderably least of the 4 1 file 133 the mass beliecause oi the The impulses .tiel-e delivery me 3.

the conduit to, hopper l-l, the comp ratively sharply inclined "ugh leecnng from, and inte ral 23 one only ightly cl 1.11, and supported while iwardly iorin nin means, located the e trough The y be slightly ugh 3!] and It is a tight ection which ting only ll] a ve tical plane. relative sidewise movement I and 23, but only relative angul a vertical when hopper H is either raised or lowered.

My weigh b1 "i! fared am is supported pivoted at 4 .Jhlch it e weights and usting mechacounte eights ncate ad; men. 78 to oolan e the bucket ac its contents.

As show- 1 Fig. I provide men here it and the weighted side of the scale beam to limit the travel thereof and provide a resilient strip of metal 80 carried by the beam 12 and which I call the contact arm of a switch S.

Switch S includes contact point 8i so positioned that when the tiltable bucket 53 is empty or only partially filled the contact arm 88 touches 8i and closes the electrical circuit H89 of my device.

E is any convenient source of electro-motive force for electric circuit I80 in which e1ectromagnetic vibrator so and switch S are included.

As shown in Fig. '7, when contact arm 83 touches contact point 8! a circuit I28 is made through wire 83, transformer T, wire 86, rheostat 85, wire 86, vibrator 60, coiled wire 84, scale beam 1'2 and switch S.

When switch S is open, it is obvious that the vibrator will not operate and I control the rapidity or vibration by means of rheostat R. The resilient construction of contact arm 88 permits it to remain in contact with 8| until the counterweight is definitely overbalanced by the needle weight thus avoiding fluttering and thereby speeding the weighing process.

Figure 4 illustrative of the path of the articles N in my device showing in dotted and full lines the position assumed. by the articles when the trough is tapped.

In Fig. 5 I show a modification of my device in which the trough H0 is of one piece and is bent at 1H so that the angle of inclination is sharper near the hopper at H2 than at the delivery end H3.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture a device for separating a mass of acicular articles received from a hopper into a single layer of articles all substantially parallel to each other and each slidably advancing with its end foremost said device comprising the combination of an elongated, trough having its bottom inclined downwardly from its article receiving portion, at a slight degree from the horizontal and having integral, oppositely disposed side walls upturned from said bottom; an electro magnetic vibrator attached to a side wall of said trough, adapted to rapidly and repeatedly tap said side wall in a direction perpendicular thereto; non yielding means, positioned on each opposite side of said trough, proximate said vibrator, for restraining the same against side wise movement and yielding means, positioned in advance of the location of said vibrator on said trough arranged to support the receiving portion thereof with a limited sidewise yielding movement.

2. Apparatus for automatically separating a mass of acicular articles into a single layer of articles all substantially parallel to each other and each slidabiy advancing end foremost, said apparatus comprising a hopper for receiving a mass of said articles; article delivery means fixed at its receiving end to the bottom of said hopper and resting at its delivery end on an horizontal surface; a trough forming the lower end of said article delivery means, having upstanding side walls integral with the bottom thereof and having its bottom inclined downwardly toward its delivery end at a slight degree from the horizontal; an electro magnetic vibrator attached to a side wall of said trough arranged to rapidly and repeatedly tap said side wall I in a sidewise direction; supporting means for said hopper arranged to limit sidewise movement thereof to a sli htly perceptible amount and positioning means for the delivery end of said trough arranged to limit sidewise movement thereof to an imperceptible amount.

3. Apparatus as specified in claim 2 wherein said article delivery means includes a vertical conduit and an integral sharply inclined trough intermediate of said means, the delivery end thereof pivotally supporting the receiving end of the trough which forms the delivery end of said article delivery means.

4. Apparatus as specified in claim 2 wherein the supporting means for said hopper includes an horizontally extending bead around said hopper, a loosely fitting band around said hopper, under said bead, and a plurality of uprights supporting said band above said surface.

5. Apparatus as specified in claim 3 wherein the positioning means for the delivery end of said trough comprises a pair of posts, each in close contact with an opposite side of said trough.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 474,777 Keith May 10, 1882 791,243 Carlson May 30, 1905 857,164 Edtbauer June 18, 1907 1,203,286 Webber Oct. 31, 1916 1,263,638 Bausman Apr. 23, 1918 2,333,435 Muskat Nov. 2, 1943 2,352,114 Muskat June 20, 1944 2,361,111 Light Oct. 24, 1944 2,466,936 Dowie Oct. 13, 1947 2,549,322 McKinsey Apr. 17, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 362,702 Great Britain Dec. 10, 1931 

